Majority raises $20m for migrant banking platform

Source: Majority

Majority, the platform offering mobile banking, international services and more to migrants in the US, today announced $20M in funding after a year of record growth, despite the tumultuous fintech market.

This is the company’s fifth funding round; the first was a seed round closed in 2021. The add-on funding was led by a group of seasoned fintech founders including Victor Jacobsson, co-founder of Klarna and the Swedish serial entrepreneur, Hjalmar Winbladh with participation of Magnus Nilsson and Jacob de Geer, co-Founders of Izettle, plus follow-on venture capital firms Valar Ventures, Heartcore Capital and Avid Ventures. The $20M round is composed of $12.5M in equity and $7.5M in debt financing from a leading bank. In addition to the funding, MAJORITY is also announcing the hiring of Abhi Pabba to serve as Chief Risk Officer. Pabba, who previously served as Apple’s manager of credit risk for the Apple Card, will support MAJORITY’s upcoming product expansion efforts to further establish itself as the leading financial resource for migrants around the world. While many companies have struggled to fundraise and have had to shutter, MAJORITY has consistently closed rounds, with more than $90M in equity funding to date. The recent funding is the final step in MAJORITY’s push towards profitability and will be used to further expand the product by developing its global immigrant-focused offering for MAJORITY users.

“We are living in a new era where immigration is both a global challenge and opportunity,” said Magnus Larsson, CEO and Founder of MAJORITY. “The faster we can help people get access to financial products and resources, the better for everyone. 2023 was a transformative year for MAJORITY; we saw strong growth in new communities and reached some exciting milestones, validating our business model and attracting established entrepreneurs who know what a successful fintech looks like.”

In 2023, venture capital funding dipped to its lowest since 2018; while underfunded firms were not writing checks, MAJORITY was able to raise new funds led by a group of individual entrepreneurs who recognized the company’s consistent success. Despite a challenging few years for the startup industry, with lowered valuations, mass layoffs and general uncertainty, MAJORITY has seen steady growth under the stewardship of Larsson, surpassing predicted milestones. As of April 2024, MAJORITY has reached $40M ARR and $200M monthly in new deposits by its users. In 2023, the company saw 3x revenue growth and 2x growth in users showing demand for its immigrant-tailored services. The company’s banking, low cost money transfers and mobile calling services are vital for the over 50M immigrants in America and the families out of the country that they support, leading to a 5x growth in transaction volume and 4x growth in remittances in 2023.

“I’ve known and worked with Magnus for more than 10 years; the consistency and the precision of this group of operators is likely the best in the consumer fintech space right now,” said Hjalmar Winbladh, a Swedish serial entrepreneur and key investor (co-founder of EQT Ventures, Rebtel, Epidemic Sound and more). “Since the beginning at MAJORITY, the team, led by Larsson, has done nothing but beat the plans month by month, quarter by quarter, year by year. MAJORITY has excelled despite a tough environment and I have no doubt it will continue to do so.”

“We’ve seen a massive oversaturation of the fintech space as many tried to rush to scale and grow, ultimately sabotaging their ability to drive stable returns for investors. MAJORITY, however, is a different story,” said Victor Jacobsson, MAJORITY investor and co-Founder of Klarna. “Building a successful company is not easy. The MAJORITY team has been very focused in their approach. Their ability to execute their plan each step of the way is impressive. I’m certain MAJORITY can become another success story from the Nordic tech scene. The numbers speak for themselves.”

MAJORITY has grown into a platform of immigrant resources bundled within the $5.99/month membership, including a checking account and debit card, local community store discounts, low cost international calling and international money transfers with competitive exchange rates and no hidden fees. MAJORITY’s unique registration process allows for all immigrants in America, even those without a social security number (SSN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), to access financial services. For non-US persons without an SSN or ITIN, MAJORITY accepts a verified government-issued photo ID (including those issued by other countries) and proof of current US residency (such as a utility bill), creating the ability for those who’ve been previously turned away from traditional institutions to access a US-based bank account for the first time in their lives. The company aims to continue expanding to meet the ever-growing needs of immigrants in America and around the world.  

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